#1 Fort Lewis defeats #10 Mines, 3-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament

DURANGO, Colo. – The 10th-ranked Colorado School of Mines men’s soccer team fell to #1 Fort Lewis by a score of 3-0 on Friday afternoon at Dirks Field.

It was the second time these two teams had met in NCAA Tournament play. In 2005, Fort Lewis, the number one team in NCAA Division II, defeated the then 16th-ranked Orediggers by a score of 1-0 in Durango, Colo.

Through the first 43 minutes plus the scored remained 0-0 until the Skyhawks drew a foul just outside the box in the 44th minute. Tom Settle notched the goal off the free kick to give FLC a 1-0 lead at halftime.

CSM tallied four shots in the second half and five total shots in the match. Alex Nass drove a shot from the left side of the field 30 yards out far post that narrowly missed bouncing off the crossbar in the 62nd minute. Nass sent a corner kick into the box in the 69th minute and Cale Haas was able to put a foot on the ball right in front of the goal but the ball was deflected out of bounds for a corner kick.

Manville Strand, who was replaced twice in the match due to injury, made one save (54:15) and stopped the RMAC’s leading scorer Euan Purcell on a breakaway. Adam Midgley tallied a pair of saves (35:45) in place of the injured Strand.

The Orediggers finish the 2009 season with a record of 15-3-4 overall and 11-2-1 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play.

For more information about Colorado School of Mines Athletics, please contact Assistant Sports Information Director Katie Simons at ksimons@mines.edu.

-- OREDIGGERS --